This application claims priority to Taiwan patent application Serial No. 090117008, filed Jul. 11, 2001.
The present invention relates to an emulsion fuel oil additive, and more particularly to an emulsion fuel oil additive to be mixed with a fuel oil and water, so as to form a water-in-oil (W/O) type of emulsion fuel oil.
The caloric value of combustion of fuel oil (heavy oil) can be converted to mechanical energy or electric energy, and is generally used in boilers or engines. Many countries have set standards and regulations to control the maximal permissible discharge level of pollutants to protect the environment. Thus, reducing the emitted concentration and amount of pollutants, such as sulfur oxide (SOx), nitrogen oxide (NOx) and carbon oxide (COx) as a result of fossil fuel combustion, is an important subject in environmental protection today.
To overcome the problems described above, some methods were developed to form an emulsion fuel oil by mixing a fuel oil, water and a specific additive, which reduce the employed quantity of fuel oil so as to dilute the emitted concentration of pollutants.
However, the emulsion fuel oil formed with the additive described in the prior arts has disadvantages of:
1. Instability after long time storage: The resulting emulsion fuel oil is not very stable that the water and oil are readily separated from each other. Most of the emulsion fuel oil can only maintain its emulsifying stability for a few days at room temperature. Thus, the emulsion fuel oil is usually used immediately as it is formed, and is unfavorable for large-scale production and long-distance transportation.
2. Difficult combustion ignition: It is found that such emulsion fuel oil is not easily ignited, and the caloric value of combustion goes down with increased quantity of water (for example, when the added quantity of water is 20 weight percent, the caloric value of combustion will go down to 70% as that of the same volume of fuel oil.) In addition, the emulsion fuel oil cannot be ignited easily when the added quantity of water is above 30 weight percent, which limits its industrial applicability.
It is found that the type and the amount of the additive affect the interaction between the fuel oil and water and further determine the quality of the formed emulsion fuel oil. Therefore, the present invention provides an improved emulsion fuel oil additive to overcome the problems described above.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an emulsion fuel oil additive to be mixed with a fuel oil and water for forming an emulsion fuel oil having a caloric value of combustion comparable to that of the same volume of fuel oil, so as to economize energy resources.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an emulsion fuel oil additive to be mixed with a fuel oil and water for forming an emulsion fuel oil having lower emitted concentration and amount of pollutants generated from combustion than that of the same volume of fuel oil.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide an emulsion fuel oil additive to be mixed with a fuel oil and water for forming an emulsion fuel oil, which can be stored for a long period of time without separation of the fuel oil and the water emulsion.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide an emulsion fuel oil additive which enables complete emulsification of fuel oil and water, and has an appropriate HLB (Hydrophilic-Lipophilic Balance) value for water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion formation, so as to generate microexplosion in combustion of the formed emulsion fuel oil for complete combustion.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide an emulsion fuel oil additive which contains a specific stabilization reagent, such that the formed emulsion fuel oil can be stored over one year below 45xc2x0 C. without separation of the fuel oil and the water emulsion.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide an emulsion fuel oil additive which contains a specific combustion-assisting reagent, such that the formed emulsion fuel oil can be ignited easily.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a method for forming an emulsion fuel oil, which is simple and produces no waste water and harmful gas in the forming process.
In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, the emulsion fuel oil additive to be mixed with a fuel oil and water for forming an emulsion fuel oil includes an emulsion reagent, a combustion-assisting reagent, a stabilization reagent, a promotion reagent, and an antioxidant reagent. The emulsion reagent is used to form a water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion fuel oil with the fuel oil and the water. The combustion-assisting reagent is used to improve ignition and combustion of the emulsion fuel oil. The stabilization reagent is used to form an interface membrane between the fuel oil and the water by a chemical reaction at a specific temperature. The promotion reagent is used to promote emulsification of the fuel oil and the water, and promote the interface membrane formation by the stabilization reagent. The antioxidant reagent is used to prevent deterioration of the emulsion fuel oil during storage.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the emulsion fuel oil additive to be mixed with a fuel oil and water for forming an emulsion fuel oil includes components A, B, C, D, and E. The component A is an emulsion reagent which is a blend of non-ionic surfactants and has an HLB value ranged from 2.5 to 8. The component B is a combustion-assisting reagent for improving ignition and combustion of the emulsion fuel oil. The component C is a stabilization reagent for forming an interface membrane between the fuel oil and the water by condensation of a phenol compound C1 and a polyol compound C2 at a specific temperature. The component D is a promotion reagent for promoting emulsification of the fuel oil and the water, and promoting the interface membrane formation by the stabilization reagent. The component E is an antioxidant reagent for preventing deterioration of the emulsion fuel oil during storage.
Preferably, based on 100 parts by weight of the component A, the component B is 5-60 parts by weight, the component C1 is 0.5-20 parts by weight, the component C2 is 0.5-45 parts by weight, the component D is 0.1-30 parts by weight, and the component E is 1-30 parts by weight.
Preferably, the component A includes 30-80 weight percent of polyoxyethylene aliphatic acid, 5-50 weight percent of SPAN20xcx9c80, and 5-50 weight percent of TWEEN20xcx9c80, based on the total weight of the component A.
The component B is a blend of an organic peroxide, an organic solvent, and a diluting oil.
Preferably, the organic peroxide is selected from a group consisting of benzoyl peroxide, di-tert-butyl peroxide, tert-butyl-peroxy-2-ethyl hexanoate, tert-butyl-peroxy-pivalate and the mixture thereof, the organic solvent is selected from a group consisting of diethylene glycol dibutyl ether, dibutyl phthalate, n-butyl acetate, methyl iso-butyl ketone and the mixture thereof, and the diluting oil is selected from a group consisting of diesel oil, heavy oil and the mixture thereof.
Preferably, the component B includes 50-95 weight percent of the organic peroxide and 5-50 weight percent of the organic solvent, based on the total weight of the component B.
Preferably, the component C1 is selected from a group consisting of methyl-phenol, dimethyl-phenol, butyl-phenol, octyl-phenol, sec-octyl-phenol, decyl-phenol and the mixture thereof, and the component C2 is selected from a group consisting of ethylene glycol, 1,2-propanediol, glycerol, pentaerythritol and the mixture thereof.
Preferably, the specific temperature is 70-95xc2x0 C.
Preferably, the component D is an inorganic peroxide selected from a group consisting of potassium permanganate, sodium permanganate and potassium bichromate.
Preferably, the component E is selected from a group consisting of 2,6-di-tert-butyl-p-cresol, 2,6-di-tert-butyl-phenol and 2,6-di-tert-butyl-a-dimethylamino-p-cresol.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a combustion-assisting reagent for improving ignition and combustion of an emulsion fuel oil is a blend of an organic peroxide, an organic solvent and a diluting oil.
Preferably, the organic peroxide is selected from a group consisting of benzoyl peroxide, di-tert-butyl peroxide, tert-butyl-peroxy-2-ethyl hexanoate, tert-butyl-peroxy-pivalate and the mixture thereof, the organic solvent is selected from a group consisting of diethylene glycol dibutyl ether, dibutyl phthalate, n-butyl acetate, methyl iso-butyl ketone and the mixture thereof, and the diluting oil is selected from a group consisting of diesel oil, heavy oil and the mixture thereof.
Preferably, the combustion-assisting reagent includes 50-95 weight percent of the organic peroxide and 5-50 weight percent of the organic solvent, based on the total weight of the combustion-assisting reagent.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a stabilization reagent for forming an interface membrane between a fuel oil and water is made by condensation of a phenol compound and a polyol compound at a specific temperature.
Preferably, the phenol compound is selected from a group consisting of methyl-phenol, dimethyl-phenol, butyl-phenol, octyl-phenol, sec-octyl-phenol, decyl-phenol and the mixture thereof, and the polyol compound is selected from a group consisting of ethylene glycol, 1,2-propanediol, glycerol, pentaerythritol and the mixture thereof.
Preferably, the specific temperature is 70-95xc2x0 C.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a promotion reagent is used for promoting emulsification of a fuel oil and water, and promoting an interface membrane formation between a fuel oil and water.
Preferably, the promotion reagent is selected from a group consisting of potassium permanganate, sodium permanganate and potassium bichromate.